ON Wednesday I took part in a Tory debate on Covid, vaccination and an independence referendum.
Donald Cameron moved the motion and I moved the amendment – both of us from our homes. Then as Monica Lennon waited to do the same, Lib Dem MSP Mike Rumbles intervened to claim that remote participation did not allow for what he called “proper debate”.
Of course Mr Rumbles knows a bit about remote participation in the Parliament, or at least its committees, as he did just that – from his second home in Italy – for a couple of months last summer.
But he is not wrong to say that real parliamentary debate is undoubtedly more difficult in Holyrood at present.
Partly that is due to Covid, partly to the particular stage in the Parliamentary process, and partly to the politics of the moment.
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Most MSPs, quite rightly, have been showing an example and only physically attending Holyrood when that is absolutely essential, as Covid regulations demand.
I shall be there on Wednesday to make a statement about Brexit but whilst at home last week I was able to answer questions, participate in a debate , appear in front of a committee and vote every day.
Between now and March 25, when Parliament rises prior to May’s election, there is a lot to be done. Bills fall if they have not passed by then so every day sees some piece of legislation move forward or come to an abrupt end.
I felt for Gil Paterson on Tuesday when his member’s bill on second post mortems fell at the first legislative hurdle. The most bitter experience I have had in my 18 years as an MSP was at this time in 2003 when my Gaelic Language Bill was killed off by the then Labour/Liberal administration.
I had only brought it because that first Scottish Government failed to deliver the promised secure status for the language but First Minister Jack MacConnell added insult to injury by insisting my attempt be torpedoed, and then on the first day of the election campaign going to Stornoway and promising (again) to deliver it himself.
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Gil has achieved a lot, including securing a protocol that has meant that the agonising grief for the families of victims caused by second post mortems, has essentially been eliminated. He will be remembered for that compassionate and principled work.
However Emma Harper’s Protection of Livestock Bill – what used to be called euphemistically sheep worrying – is likely to make it through as are a number of important government bills including the Domestic Abuse Bill and the transferring into Scots Law of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child .
The angst of some MSPs about their electoral prospects is also particularly acute as the fifth full term of the Scottish Parliament comes to an end, and it shows.
Labour is absorbed in yet another leadership contest but along with the Liberals and the Tories is panicked by what the people of Scotland are saying they want. Their head offices in London are panicked too and the old Better Together band is desperately tuning up for a reprise. Keir Starmer backing the utterly unnecessary and indeed insulting Boris Johnson visit was an early indication.
That is why the Tories have been hurling everything they can at the SNP-led Scottish Government when better sense would have told them that exploiting the pandemic not only looks bad but also does a major disservice to our collective safety and recovery.
Electoral angst is also exacerbated by the fact that the emerging campaign will be like no other in history. Door-knocking, leaflet delivering (except by the Post Office) and street stalls are all currently forbidden and telephone canvassing is difficult given data protection laws. Parties with low membership and limited geographic reach will find it harder to get their message across no matter how much money they splurge upon the task.
No outcome is ever guaranteed in any election. The contest is not over until the last ballot box is sealed. To win the SNP need to have a laser-like focus on listening to Scotland, deliver the type of competent and caring government which has been our hallmark for the last 14 years and inspire with a unified and unifying vision of the type of recovery which can – if we choose a confident independent way forward – transform the lives of all our citizens.
But also, in the next seven weeks we have to finish the jobs still outstanding in this Parliament, no matter the many difficulties.
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Callum Baird, Editor of The National
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